ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

Grand design spiral galaxy

A grand design spiral galaxy is like a really big city in space. This city is made up of billions and billions of stars, all different sizes and colors, just like the buildings in a city. These stars are organized into spiral arms that kind of look like pinwheels, with a bright center where the most stars are.

But just like a city, there's more to a grand design spiral galaxy than just stars! There's also gas and dust swirling around, kind of like cars and trucks on the roads. This gas and dust can come together to make new stars, just like how new buildings can be built in a city.

Scientists think that the way these galaxies form and look the way they do is because of something called gravity. This is like a big magnet in space that pulls everything towards it. As more and more stars and gas get pulled towards the center of the galaxy, they start to spin around it, creating those cool spiral arms we see.

Even though these galaxies may be far away and seem really big and complicated, they are still just a part of the amazing universe we live in!